Betelgeuse
by Pan's Box
Summary: "At least I was never named Betelgeuse." The story of a star, a dog, a rogue and a friend. The story of Sirius Black.
1. Chapter 1

"But I don _wannoo_!"

"Sirius, dear, _please-_ "

"NOOOOOOOO!" Sirius shrieked at his mother, desperate to stay out of those _horrendous_ robes.

It is the autumn of 1963, and preparations for Sirius' 4th birthday party are well underway in the Black household. House elves scurried around, frantically going about their business (or simply _looking busy_ , as was Taffy's way) and avoiding the Black mistress like the plague.

The latest addition to the ever-expanding list on Walberga's mind was a new robe for Sirius - _honestly, that boy grows so quickly, it's ridiculous -_ and her mother's seamstress had obliged, stepping in at the last minute to fashion him one of the latest mode. It had fitted him beautifully, and the colour looked quite resplendent against his pale skin and black hair.

And Sirius _hated_ it with a burning passion. Quite literally, in fact, as it burst into flames in Walberga's hand.

A raised eyebrow and a scowl of impatience were his reward, as his mother extinguished the fire and cast the singed garment aside. With a sigh, she sent her mother a Patronus, asking when Lietta would next be available.

Almost three years of age now, Regulus had become an excellent playmate, in Sirius' mind. He would always let Sirius play Beater in Quidditch, wasn't very good at chess and had yet to understand the objective of Gobstones. (Neither did Sirius for that matter, but he thought it irrelevant.)

Most of their time was spent chasing each other around Grimmauld Place, playing hide-and-seek and trying desperately to stay out of trouble when their father was around.

Not that he was around much, mind you; but when he was, Orion took great care to impress upon his young sons that they must never do anything to tarnish the family name. The only lesson he ever received from his own father, it was now his turn to inflict such emotional burdens on his infant sons.

It was not of any great concern for either of the boys. As far as their mother was concerned, they could do no wrong. And so long as it was their mother that caught them, the family name was safe. At least, that's how it appeared to Sirius. 

øøøøøøø 

A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you're all well! This story is based on an idea I had about a minute before I fell asleep a couple of nights ago and has been brewing ever since. A lot of what you will read is going to draw on common tropes in Harry Potter fanfiction, and for that I will not apologise - we are always creating and developing this magical world!

This is going to be a fic about Sirius' life, from childhood through to... wherever this story takes me! No doubt this has been done several times before, but I hope you will have the patience to stay the distance. I'm hoping to update once a month, but I can't promise anything. I understand that this will be frustrating for you all, but hopefully it will be worth it! 

Today is a wonderful day on two accounts: SCOTUS just legalised equal marriage for the entirety of the US, and JK just announced that Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is going ahead! And so it's with optimism that I write this story, however angst-ridden and tragic it may be at times. 

Until next time, 

_Pan x_


	2. Chapter 2

Sirius' party had been a resounding success. Pureblood families from around the world had travelled to the Black family château in Normandy, and Orion had enjoyed himself thoroughly. There had been much discussion of his nieces' betrothals, though he had paid little attention to such frivolous talk - Abraxas had kindly obliged by changing the subject to the matter of Grindelwald.

Grindelwald was Orion's favourite matter of discussion, this week. Whatever happened to him? Where did he go? Surely Dumbledore was not so powerful as to have vanquished one of his _peers?_ (At this point, the women rolled their eyes good-naturedly and promptly moved into another room. Gossip was infinitely preferable to conspiracy theories.)

 _Sirius could not have cared less. He was too busy helping Belticks and Dromda hide Dungbombs in the food. (Helping at this point very much involved taking handfuls of food out of each plate, or - as it was in this case - his own birthday cake.)_

Unfortunately, Taffy had been lurking under the table, avoiding serving duties and dismantling each bomb whenever the children were distracted.

And so it was at the end of the day, they were found in a heap, in the second parlour in front of the fire, groggy with full stomachs and slightly bemused as to why there was no commotion downstairs.

The Blacks had always encouraged magic in their younglings. _It built character_ , they said.

They laughed when they found a house-elf buried alive in the rose garden. Even Orion had chuckled, and clapped five-year-old Sirius on the shoulder in praise. (Dobby had a resounding fear of enclosed spaces for years to come.)

Not a week after that, Orion and Walberga had fought, wands and all. Sirius locked each of them in separate rooms for half a day out of fear that _they might actually kill one another this time_ , before flooing to Bella so she could sort this out.

Muttering loudly, and covered in soot ("Don't your bloody house-elves clean _anything_?") Bella stumbled out of the fireplace, followed by Andy, Cissy and a very anxious Sirius. Regulus still sat where he had been left, bawling his eyes out.

Sirius showed his eldest cousin where he'd locked up his parents, only to find they had Apparated out and resumed their fight on the other side of the beech trees, far out of earshot.

Worry flashed across Bella's face, before she took a deep breath, composing herself. She marched determinedly across to the long line of beech trees, using the flashing spell-light to work out where her uncle and aunt were. Stepping out from behind a tree, she yelled, " _Expelliarmus!_ "

The spell did nothing except ricochet off a nearby bench, but the two adults were distracted enough to look around. Bella burst into tears.

"I'm so- so sorry, Uncle Orion. Aunt Walberga. I-I-I didn't want to interrupt. But I-I _can't_ have you d-die. You're too important. You mean too m-much to me, and..." Bellatrix started wailing and sobbing uncontrollably. Orion shifted, clearly uncomfortable, before looking at his wife. "You should probably deal with... that," gesturing towards the crying girl. He then turned smoothly in the spot and vanished.

There was a moment of silence. Not even the trees dared stir a leaf. Then -

"You need to stop interfering, child. Sirius cannot come running to you whenever he feels upset, the boy needs to grow a spine. What is he going to do when you are at Hogwarts?"

Bellatrix scowled, turned on her heels and marched back to the house. She had enjoyed being depended upon, enjoyed the responsibility she was charged with whenever Sirius flooed in in a panic, whenever Andromeda broke a bone or Narcissa was found crying after an insult. She enjoyed being needed.

 _No matter,_ she thought. _I'll make sure to be needed in one way or another._

Sirius ran towards her and threw his little arms around her waist. She crouched down so they were eye-to-eye, wiped Regulus' tears away, and took Sirius' elbow.

"How old are you now?" she asked gently. Sirius held up a hand, fingers splayed. "Almost five, correct. That makes you a big boy. You need to take care of yourself now. Who's going to look after Regulus when I'm not here? You are, that's right. So next time, wait for them to finish, or send them outside. Okay?"

Sirius pretended to think about it for a moment, and then nodded.

Satisfied, Bella brushed off her robes, gathered up her sisters and stepped back into the fireplace. "See you at my party!" Cissy yelled, waving frantically. Green powder flew everywhere, and then they were gone.

øøøøøøø

A/N: Hello again! I'm sorry for the delay, summer exams really take it out of you! Here's the second instalment of the story, let me know what you think. Are the characters believable? If there are any errors please make sure to point them out!

Basically what I'm trying to say is it'd be lovely to hear from you! I'm going to try and update every month - I'm not promising anything but I hope you'll be patient and follow along when you can.

Until next time,

 _Pan x_


	3. Chapter 3

Taffy was smiling. _Smiling._

Today was not going to end well.

"So really, all you need to do, really, is spin around and then touch your toes, like so," she demonstrated. Sirius copied, fumbled, and tripped over his feet. Cissy clapped enthusiastically - "you're almost there, really!" - whilst the little boy burst into a fit of giggles.

 _Silly Siri_. _Falling over like a mandrake._

They had been stuck in the cellar for an eon (around an hour), and Cissy was proving to be an excellent host. So far, she had taught young Sirius dining etiquette ("you use the forks from the _outside in_ , really"), proper posture and was in the midst of demonstrating to him the perfect pirouette. He was really an excellent learner, in Cissy's mind: he adored her, and copied her every move.

"Do the face thing again, really!" Sirius crowed, eagerly awaiting the most fascinating lesson of all.

Cissy smiled, and stretched out her arm towards him. He raised his little fist high above his head, and slapped her wrist with all the strength he could muster. Cissy's face contorted in pain; and then, in an instant, emotion disappeared from her face, now as smooth and illegible as marble. She smiled demurely down at her young cousin, and in his mind she was the exact picture of his perfect mother.

It was now Sirius' turn to burst into applause. Cissy flinched at the sound, but then grinned at her cousin, so glad to have such an appreciative (albeit captive) audience.

Relishing in his admiration, Cissy couldn't help but show off a little. "Want to see something _really cool_?" she whispered eagerly. Sirius nodded, leaning in. He loved secrets. Someday he would have secrets to tell Cissy, too. Really.

Cissy clicked her fingers, one after another. _Click-cla-click. Click-cla-click._ Sparks, red, blue, purple and orange, flew from her fingertips. Sirius watched, entranced by the pretty colours. _Click-cla-click. Click-cla-click._ The sparks flew ever closer, dancing before his eyes.

And then, in a blink of an eye, Cissy was frantically flapping her hands in front of him, unknowingly fanning the growing flames. Screaming for help.

Sirius was bald for a week. Regulus was terrified by this awful new person who had replaced his older brother. Bella howled with laughter when she heard the news.

Neither of Sirius nor Cissy were ever again able to conjure flames without smelling _that_ smell, of burning hair and horrifying confusion.

Taffy frowned. She'd only locked them away to keep them out of the Christmas Gala, away from the food. How was she to know that they were gonna start a fire? She hid herself away behind a stone statue, waiting for the inevitable _accio_ spell that would begin her punishment.

Sirius would look back on the incident with conflicting feelings of horror and amusement during his time at Hogwarts; it quickly became one of embarrassment when Peter found the photograph of little bald 5-year-old Sirius' pouting face. It then _somehow_ became plastered onto the doors of each and every girls' dormitory room in the castle. (Even in the Slytherin common room; although Andromeda's cheeky wink from across the Great Hall solved that mystery in less than a minute.)

Trust the Marauders to make a terrifying matter into one of kind-hearted hilarity. Daft beggars.

øøøøøøø

A/N: Wow. I cannot believe it's been a year since the last update! I've finished my law degree and I'm about to start my teaching training course; and what a rollercoaster ride it's been. At any rate, I'm so glad that I'm able to start writing again. I'm going to try and write the next chapter soon, so I can start updating regularly for you beautiful people.

I hope you enjoyed reading! I know it was a slightly darker chapter this time around, but I'm trying to capture a range in my writing.

Special shout out to My Pet Niffler for being my first favourite and follower! Thank you – it was such a pleasant surprise to log in and see that.

As always, let me know what you think! It would be lovely to hear from you all, so please do favourite, follow and review.

Until next time,

 _Pan x_


	4. Chapter 4

Taffy had to give them credit; they'd certainly been more creative this year. No more Dungbombs hidden in the food ("No, Sirius, we've grown past such childish exploits," Bella had huffed in what seemed like a _very adult manner_ ), but instead, attached to every floating ornament, was a little Cornish Pixie. How they got up there without any commotion was entirely beyond the house-elves. But they knew who would be dealing with the aftermath, and so it was with baited breath and tense excitement they continued serving Firewhisky and Dragon Barrel Brandy to the increasingly rude and raucous guests.

"Do we all know the plan?" Dromda whispered to the others, huddled under yet another banqueting table.

"Yes, of course, now let's bloody well get a-"

"Bella, we _know_ you understand, I was asking the boys."

Three pair of eyes looked expectantly at the Black brothers. Regulus, busy gnawing on a chicken drumstick, froze, then turned to look to his older brother for direction. Sirius laughed.

"You look silly, Reg."

"Sirius, listen-"

"SssiriUSSS! Where are you, dear?" Walberga slurred, suddenly missing the company of her eldest child. "Come here, boy, and bring Narcissa with you."

Narcissa took his hand, and together they crept out from under the table and tentatively tiptoed towards his mother. "THERE YOU ARE!" she beamed, oddly jubilant. Struggling to focus in her glassy-eyed stupor, she grabbed Narcissa by the wrist and yanked her forward.

"Lucius Malfoy, I introduce to you Narcissa Black." A tall, slender boy stepped forward and bowed, his pale blonde hair glistening in the candlelight. Narcissa returned the favour, delicately curtsying in one smooth, practiced motion, batting her eyelashes and giggling softly.

Sirius was entranced. _What a silly dance_. _What a silly face Cissy is pulling. Silly Cissy_. The boy, however – _Lissis? Looliss?_ – was so very pretty. He had pretty hair. His momentary bliss was cut short, however, when he felt a tugging on the hem of his robe. Regulus was sat at his feet, thumb in his mouth, pulling Sirius away.

Sirius yanked away his dress robe and tried to turn his focus back to the new couple. But the tugging persisted, so Sirius turned with all the thunder he could muster, and spat, "WHAT?" into the stomach of a very amused Dromda. Crouching down to meet his eye, she whispered, "Ready, little one?" He nodded, unsure of what he was ready for, but eager to participate nonetheless.

The eldest Black child lead Sirius over to the door, where the others were sat giggling with anticipation. He flopped down onto the embroidered rug that marked the entrance to the hall, wondering where Cissy was and why he was so nervous all of a sudden. Andromeda tucked her hair behind her ear, fixed her face in the nearest mirror, and made her way up onto the stage, quieting the band with a nod of her head.

Perfectly composed, she stood tall and waited for the inevitable drunken silence.

"Dearly beloved, we have gathered here today," she paused for the crowd's laughter to subside, "to celebrate the official betrothal of Narcissa Black to Lucius Malfoy!" This time, it was rowdy cheers of the patriarchs which caused her to pause in her speech. "Let the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black join with the most respected of our Sacred Twenty-Eight, the family of Malfoy-"

"Respected is not the word I would use!" slurred Walberga, much louder than she intended. Orion rolled his eyes, and made a comment about "women these days" to Abraxas, and with a wand of his hand, indicated to his niece that she should continue.

"..the family of Malfoy to form a new alliance, stronger and wiser than ever before. Toujours Pur!" Cheers filled the room once more, as Walberga held up the arms of Lucius and Narcissa as if they were competitors in Quidditch. "Enjoy the celebrations," Andromeda giggled, rushing off stage and towards the doors, grabbing Narcissa on her way out. The five children piled out of the hall, screaming with laughter and excitement; nobody heard the whispered _alohomora_ before the mahogany door swung shut, nor the off-key "April Fools!" sung by the Black sisters on their way out, much to their misfortune. Chaos ensued.

The day ended much in the same way as most of the parties at the Black château: five sleepy children laid atop one another in front of a fireplace (usually that of Aunt Araminta, much to her chagrin), wondering as to the goings-on downstairs – although there was less of the latter on this occasion, as the pandemonium was still underway and very much audible, even three hours after the pixies had been set loose.

Bella giggled softly. "It's so much easier to play pranks when they're drunk."

"Do you think we should go and help them?" Sirius frowned. He wasn't used to this much noise, and the screams kept making him jump. Cissy reached out and patted him gently on the head.

"Hush now Siri," she whispered, "they're just having fun. You get some sleep now."

And so it was to the sound of breaking plates and intoxicated swearing that the Black children fell asleep, content in having finally succeeded at a prank.

"'Pril Foo'" mumbled Regulus, curled up against his brother's leg and sucking on his thumb.

øøøøøøø

A/N: Aaaand here's the fourth chapter! This is a special one because I have (drumroll please)… FOUR FOLLOWERS! Shout out to Drifting17 (thank you for your review!), ElnaKernor, LexiXyliaBlack and Your Pet Niffler – you've really made my day. Thank you so much!

I hope you're all well and you enjoy this chapter – sorry for missing last month's – and let me know what you think.

Until next time,

 _Pan x_


End file.
